Oct 4, 2018

Last week, as I was reading God's Word, a verse jumped out at me. Here it is.

"After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters." Genesis 5:22

Did you notice when Enoch began walking with God?

It was when he became a father. The birth of his son, Methuselah, was a catalyst that brought Him closer to God and prompted Him to begin walking with God faithfully.

I believe this still rings true today. One of the best times to reach parents is when they have a new baby. It's a wake-up call. It causes many parents to begin feeling the weight of giving their child some type of religious training and life foundation.

And so they walk into your church, looking for some help with this new "parenting" season of their life.If you want to reach them, then make sure your nursery is clean, calm and comforting. Nursery team members have a huge role in making the new family feel welcome. If there is any hint that the baby won't be cared for, you'll have a hard time convincing the new mother to leave her child with you.

In this post, I share 10 keys to effective nursery ministry. Another great way to connect with new parents is through baby dedication. Attach a class to your dedication and require parents to go through it before their child is dedicated. In the class, explain what the dedication is about and then teach them how to raise their children to love Jesus. And most importantly, share the Gospel with the parents as part of the class. I have done this and seen many parents come to Christ as they experienced the class.

Here is the child dedication curriculum I created for churches. Hundreds of parents have gone through it and taken spiritual steps because they attended. People have also invited Jesus into their life as the Gospel is shared in the class. You can get more info. and check it out at this link. There is a statement I think about often. Here it is. "When you take a child by the hand, you take a parent by the heart."It happened to Enoch and it can happen to the young families in your community. Seize the opportunity.